Describe a challenging profession you know about.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you're going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Model Answer:
Umpiring in cricket is one of the most challenging profession I have ever known. In fact, this is one of the toughest profession I have ever seen in my life. Thank you for such a smart question and here are the answers.

Umpires are those people who are set to play the role of referee in sports, particularly in cricket. The man who stands behind the wicket with a distance wearing hat is known as the umpire of the game. He is responsible to run the game smoothly and provide important decisions like responding to the appeal of out, declaring the end of a bowling over, declaring the extra runs and more other issues. This is a challenging profession indeed as the umpire needs to remain aware of everything during the play. But this is a prestigious profession as well. The umpires are respected everywhere and have access to places where the ordinary people cannot even think of.

The most important challenge is focusing. The umpires need to be focused on some specific issues during the game. Firstly, they need to focus on the bowling of the bowlers. If they are delivering the balls in the right and prescribed manner. If there is any mismatch between the bowling pattern and the prescribed process, the umpire declares accordingly. Besides, the umpire is also responsible for looking after the stepping of the bowlers. On the other sides, the umpire takes a sharp look at the batsmen. Sometimes they need to have a focused look on the stepping of the batsmen as well. Declaring an out is another challenging task for them. If there is any mistake in the declaration of an ‘out’, it may ruin the career of a batsman. Besides, if there is a wrong decision, the umpire is brought under scanner if he is biased by any means or not.

To be frank, I am not eligible for the profession of a professional umpire. This is a tough job. I lack the skills and expertise required for the decision making. Moreover, I do not have so much focusing ability. The umpires have to stand on their legs till the cricket match continues. So, it is another disability of mine that I am unable to stand for long hours and without any external support. The umpires have to decide carefully about the decisions of out and not out. Sometimes, a wrong decision may bring negative criticism which is unbearable to me. Besides, I do not have the sharp eyesight. The umpires often provide the decision of LBW and they do not need to see the entire bowling and foot placement on screen repeatedly. They see it once and give a decision which is accurate in most of the cases. But I am unable to do any of those. So, this is not the profession for me.

Umpiring is a challenging profession in many aspects. When an umpire is on the playground, he needs to be careful about some certain matters. He needs to know all the available rules of cricket. He needs to take an instant decision. Besides, if he makes any mistake, it is he who is to be responsible for. Rewards and resources are limited but they need to provide the best performance. When they fail to take any decision, they need to consult with the third umpire for accuracy or decide any unresolved or pending decision. In a word, they are to take unbearable physical and mental pressure when they are on the ground. Therefore, I think this is a challenging profession indeed.